EFFECT OF DIFFERENT INTERCROPS ON YIELD, QUALITY AND ECONOMICS OF SUGARCANE

Abstract

Sugarcane is of great value in the world as it provides sugar to more than half of global population. Cultivated land in the world is decreasing very rapidly due to urbanization, road construction and land deterioration. While the world population is increasing day by day. This world scenario demands maximum economic returns per acre to feed world population. Intercropping in sugarcane is very important in this regard and may become popular among farmers due to long duration and late return from sugarcane crop. Intercropping in sugarcane has potential to provide farmers with maximum economic returns per acre per annum. In a field experiment, different intercrops were sown in autumn planted sugarcane at research area of Sugarcane Research Institute, Faisalabad, Pakistan during the crop season 2015-16. The intercropping systems comprised of SC + lentil, SC + linseed, SC + canola, SC + onion and check with alone SC. The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design with three replications. The results revealed that SC +lentil gave higher cane (138.44 t ha-1) and sugar (16.56 t ha-1) yield with maximum economic benefits as compared with others